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Development of a national ‘invasive species management’ digital information portal

Summary

The existing PestSmart toolkit distils 12 years of research on best practice pest animal management, and offers a central resource library and repository of information. A major aspect of this toolkit is the PestSmart Connect website launched in March 2015.

PestSmart is a proven and valued tool. The platform is becoming well known and utilised as a digital resource for land managers wanting to learn more about pest animal management.

Our Centre now has a number of digital tools now developed including FeralScan, the Invasives Action Tool and species-specific Decision Support Systems and this project is about integrating all these resources to create a one-stop shop for invasive species management information in one place and to link out to other useful digital resources. As part of this project we are also aiming to incorporate weeds management information so it encompasses both invasive plants and animals.

Status

In progress

Objectives

The aim of this project is to ensure that invasive species best practice information is easily and readily available to our end-users and can be shared through our partner and member organisations, so they can be confident they are sharing information which is factual, correct and relevant to their stakeholders.

It includes the following objectives to:

Undertake a review of current and future digital biosecurity and invasive species tools to ensure collaboration, coordination and investment in an innovative product that is not in direct competition with already existing programs.

Develop a robust and end-user driven digital resource tailored to the objectives of our partner and member organisations.

Provide purpose-built and engaging PestSmart and Weed toolkits and resources for best practice management planning, coordination and monitoring via digital and printed means.

Ensure integration of invasive species data (where possible) across platforms such as FeralScan and independent programs to enable a one-stop shop for invasive species information.

Undertake monitoring and evaluation of the digital assets to assess the impact of awareness and knowledge in the sector.

Project Leader

Dr Ian McDonald

Communications Manager, Centre for Invasive Species Solutions

Dr Ian McDonald is a science communication professional who has a strong background in research, education and community engagement.

In his role as Communications Manager he leads the implementation of the centre’s communications strategy to promote a diverse array of research projects. He has also coordinated the roll-out of major national pest animal campaigns and programs.

Ian has previously worked for national organisations such as the CSIRO, ANU, Alzheimer’s Australia and the Invasive Animals CRC.

Qualifications:

Bachelor of Applied Science with Honours in Wildlife Management, UQ

PhD in Animal Reproduction and Animal Immunology, UQ

Master of Science Communication, ANU

Project Team

Ian McDonald, Centre for Invasive Species Solutions

Yvette Cazabon, Centre for Invasive Species Solutions

Rachel Melland, Rachel Melland Consulting

Peter West, NSW Department of Primary Industries

Project Partners

All our members, partners and key stakeholders will provide input into this project and website re-development through consultation and workshops.

Outputs

February 2019:

Over the past 12 months, the CISS digital communications delivery team has focused on engagement with users of weeds information to ensure that the creation of a new national weeds information website meets their needs.

To this end, the team has attended key stakeholder meetings, run an online survey and undertaken a workshop which has resulted in developing a preliminary website framework which will be road tested over the coming months.